Behavioral Coaching in Classical Ballet

A review of the literature indicates the usefulness of operant methods to develop or enhance sports skills. This study extended the use of this approach to the acquisition of correct ballet skills by four subjects in a ballet class. Using a single case design, behavioral coaching was compared to the ballet instructor's method. Four ballet barre exercises (degage, frappe, developpe, and grand battement) were selected as the dependent variables. Execution of all four ballet skills increased from an average of 13% under the ballet instructor's method to a performance of 88% under the behavioral coaching. These results indicate that behavioral procedures are applicable to modifying artistic and creative behaviors such as those found in the fine arts.